Ongoing efforts have been made over the years to control the emissions created by the use of hydrocarbon fuels and to increase the performance of such fuels. One method that has been used is to increase the oxygen content of the fuels, for example by adding ethanol, as is done in the Midwest region of the United States, or by adding methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), as is required in California and in major U.S. cities. However, MTBE is quite water soluble and the ground water in many parts of the United States is contaminated by MTBE. However, MTBE itself is a pollutant since it is very water-soluble and any fuel leak will pollute ground water with MTBE. Other proposed methods of increasing the oxygen content of fuels include adding ethers alone or adding ethers mixed with alcohols. Alcohols have the disadvantage that fuels that contain alcohols can become acidic from air oxidation of the alcohol and can form solids hat will plug filters and injectors if the fuel is stored for a long period of time. Further, alcohol compounds impart no lubricity to the fuel and can make the fuel more corrosive.
Peroxides have also been proposed as a source of oxygen for fuels, but peroxides are unstable and can cause the chemical breakdown of fuel in storage tanks, which makes the fuel unusable.
At the present time, there is a need for a product that has both a capability of effectively controlling harmful emissions in fuels such as middle distillate fuels and gasoline and a chemical compatibility with such fuels, so that the fuels remain stable for long periods of time under typical storage conditions.